LNER Route: Leicester to Marylebone

Catesby Tunnel (Northants)

Catesby tunnel which at 2997 yards, was the longest on the
Great Central's route to London, the last of the mainline railways to be built
by the Victorians. The Catesby Tunnel was originally planned as a cutting, but
due to it running through a wealthy land owners estate, it was insisted that
the cutting be turned into a tunnel. The contractor responsible for building
this section of the London Extension (Contract No.4, Rugby to Woodford) was T
Oliver & Son. At 27 feet wide and 25 feet 6 inches high, Catesby Tunnel is
straight throughout and on a rising gradient of 1:176 to the south, with the
summit of this section reached as daylight resumes. It was designed as an 'egg
shape' tunnel with eight ventilation shafts along its length. It was lined with
Staffordshire Blue brick, and over 30 million were used in the 3km length. Its
creation demanded round 290,000 cubic yards of mining. Work to sink the first
shaft began on 18th February 1895 and the last length was keyed in on 22nd May
1897 - a remarkably quick average rate of 110 yards per month. Progress was
greatly accelerated by the use of Ruston steam navvies (cranes). The tunnel was
mostly driven from nine construction shafts, each equipped with wooden headgear
which was used to lower materials to the men working beneath. None though was
permitted within 500 yards of the north portal due to the landowner's wish that
the privacy of his residence, close to the workings, be maintained. As a
result, 264 yards through very heavy ground had to be constructed by means of a
12x10ft bottom heading and break-ups.

This proved liable to breakages and one part completely
collapsed. The surrounding strata was under significant pressure which resulted
in a heavy lining of seven rings in the arch and side walls, with six rings in
the invert. These were divided into 10-foot sections. Cut-and-cover was used
for the first 44 yards from the north portal. The length adjoining this had so
little ground above it that the two crown bars were laid from a trench on the
surface. The remainder of the tunnel proved relatively light work and was
driven full-sized without headings. Here the lining is mostly five rings thick
with a four-ring invert, all faced with Staffordshire brindle and built in lime
mortar. Around 30 million bricks were swallowed up by the structure. Very
little water ingress was experienced, amounting to around 80 gallons per
minute. Chases were built into the back of the brickwork at intervals, leading
to pipes built through the side wall at rail level. Water was then discharged
into a culvert in the six-foot, accessed via deep catchpits. Ventilation is
provided by five shafts. Four of these are 10 feet in diameter but the
northernmost - 1,250 yards from the entrance - is 15 feet wide to provide
greater air flow. The landowner did not want his view blighted by rising smoke
either! The first belch from coal traffic occurred on 25th July 1898.

Trackworkers were relatively well served with regular
refuges provided on both sides and three rest cabins built into the Up side
wall. One is located directly opposite the tablet that marks the "half way"
point. Both lines through the tunnel were inspected by the local ganger twice
each day. In the winter of 1906, this role was carried out by Joseph Turner, as
it had been for the previous 18 months. At about 4:20pm on 4th January he
completed an examination of the Down line. Half-an-hour later, a
London-Manchester express with upwards of 50 passengers on board entered the
south end of the tunnel at around 60mph. As it approached the fifth shaft, a
rail broke beneath the locomotive and all five coaches behind it derailed,
ripping up 450 yards of track. The last carriage became detached and came to a
stand foul of the adjacent Up line as a goods train was approaching. Only
prompt action by the driver, who put down a detonator, and the guard, who
sounded the whistle, prevented a collision. The report on the derailment of the
passenger train in Catesby Tunnel can be seen here
courtesy of the Railways
Archive website. Catesby Tunnel retired from operational service on 3rd
September 1966 since which time the permanent way has been removed.